New Address

I've moved apartment. Housing is quite controlled here, and aside from owning your own home where you can pretty much do as you please, apartments are designated as 'hyresrätt' (right to hire) or 'bostadrätt' (right to live). Bostadsrätt flats are meant to be owner occupied, not rented out, so there is a limit of 1 year if you don't live there. Because the owner of my flat is not coming back to Luleå yet he was forced to sell it. He's not too unhappy though, seeing as he got more than double what he paid for it 3 years ago.

So, now I am in a flat half the size of the previous one (26 sqm), but closer to uni (3 min bike ride or 12-15 min walk).

For those possibly intending to write my new adress is:

Mark Terner
Vänortsvägen 26:71
Luleå 977-54
(you can leave off the dots!)

For local visitors I am in the 2nd circle, 4th-floor, room 1.

Good points (so far):

• Cheaper ($120 a week)
• Closer to uni
• Closer to people I know from uni
• Sunnier, better ventilation
  

Bad points (so far):

• Hot water takes forever to start (several minutes)
• Even more light leaks in now in summer than old apartment - must fix as I keep waking up at 3:30am
• Further from town
• Most people I know from uni aren't in Luleå at the moment
• Fridge door doesn't swing shut on its own. You wouldn't think it's a big deal but after years of just using a simple push to get it closed on its own you can't imagine how annoying it is to have to actually keep contact all the way to the seal. And how many times I forget.
  

After the first load of moving - a celebratory meal of watermelon and Cointreau with Marco and Katherine. And the possibility of a lot of czech beer.